With three kids, ages 7, 5, and 3, I was in full blown diaper changing mode for SEVERAL years.

And by me, I mean me and my wife.

And my mother-in-law.

And anyone else with a pair of free hands.

My wife found a way to reward them for “taking care of business” on the potty. She created a chart and every fourth time they went, they got a new toy.

Not to mention that every time they went, we cheered like we just watched the Music City Miracle for the first time.

One of the biggest desires of human nature is to be loved and to receive recognition.

This is why a customer will spend more with a business that has shown them appreciation than they would with an unknown business that is offering a “great deal” to new customers.

With the holidays around the corner, here are four ways to show appreciation for your customers.

1. Use social media and email marketing to openly thank your customer. If you sell business-to-business, then this would also be a great opportunity to tell everyone why this customer is awesome at what they do.

2. Tell them thank you! Simply send them an email or if you really want to get into this, write a personal letter. ACTUALLY HAND-WRITE THE LETTER. This is rarely done and people rarely throw these letters away.

3. Take the time out of your schedule to take them to lunch or just have coffee. This will be an opportunity for you to personally thank them, and who knows, maybe even find an additional opportunity for business.

4. Share brilliant tips and tricks with them. Use blog posts and video to share real information that can make their life easier.

For example, Decatur County Bank used this video to tell their customers how to easily improve their credit score.

This kind of engaging information helps their customer, while allowing them to stay top of mind.